Sometimes I forget that we live in Africa since, on the whole, I have kept the same general routine that I had in SF. Then there are times when I hear the wise words of my dear friends Leonardo Dicaprio and Aleta P remind me, “This is Africa.” TIA can be used in MANY instances.
For example, yesterday, instead of my usual grind, I met up with Tina and Aleta (two fabulous expats who have taken me in) at 9 AM and we took the quick 40-minute drive to Stellenbosch for a game drive. We started with a little toast of bubbly and then jumped in our jeeps to see the game. I didn’t know what to expect because my experience with game reserves close to cities has not been great. The reserve we visited a few years ago outside of Nairobi was a pretty sad affair; more like a zoo than safari. This was not that.
The reserve is owned and operated by a vineyard (hence the bubbly), the owners of which are dedicated to keeping this country green and beautiful. Before we drove in to the game park, they quickly showed us around the grounds. Unlike the majority of the vineyards in South Africa, Villiera handpicks their grapes, requiring lots of staff on the farm. To support their staff, they have a school and a medical clinic on the grounds available to employees and their families. They also operate a small non-profit for children born with fetal alcohol syndrome. Unfortunately, the effect of a mostly illiterate workforce is a high rate of FAS in the winelands. The non-profit is also on a mission to educate the area about the effects of drinking while pregnant. I was really impressed with the entire operation.
Once in the gates, we started the game drive. It felt very similar to driving around the ranch looking for white-tail, hogs and coyotes except we were looking for zebras, springbok and giraffes. The reserve is made up of acreage donated by three surrounding vineyards to create a sanctuary for the animals on the land. Again, I was impressed and thought, “This is Africa.”
Upon returning home from my very African day, I had a hankering for some good ole American delivery. Dominos was recently introduced to the Western Cape and I was ready for some thin-crust pepperoni pizza. Pepperoni does not exist in Cape Town so when I checked the Dominos menu as saw “American pepperoni” I got pretty excited. I called Dominos and the phone rang and rang until finally voicemail picked up to tell me a completely different number than the one I dialed was no longer in service. WHAT?! I double-checked the website and called again only to receive the same message. After exhausting all methods of finding another contact number, I thought, “This is Africa,” and made a turkey sandwich.
So between the mundane and the extraordinary, I am often reminded, “This is Africa,” and I feel extremely lucky to experience it.
ElephantsAbroad 